Two Lives
by Hawk Niag
Summary: AU Inuyasha's unwanted at home & in most of society. Kagome's having a tough time just balancing life. Why wouldn't they meet? Add in a half brother and a scary guy who actually wants to take over the world and you have the story of...two lives.


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Chapter 1

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The sun sets as a boy about seventeen walks down an abandoned street. Dressed in a black muscle shirt and dark, baggy pants, he gives off the aura of a dangerous hunter. His long silver hair is pulled back in a loose ponytail and a tarnished looking chain hangs around his neck, swinging in time with his lissome motions.

Across the tracks, down a few alleyways, and up a level, he finally stops in front of a rundown apartment house. `Today was hell…' With that thought, he opens the sickly green door and steps through into a surprisingly clean and attractive front room.

"Ah, boy. You're back." An older lady greets him from an open doorway.

"Hey Kaede!" He answers, surveying her. "You better let someone not so ancient do some work around here, you look half dead.

"No thanks," She shakes her head and smiles at the veiled offer of help, "You'd better be getting yourself upstairs. Denia's been making quite a racket." She gives him a meaningful look before turning back to her work.

His face darkens as faint pounds meet his sensitive ears. Taking the stairs two at a time, he wonders grimly how much alcohol she'd had before coming home. Reaching the door, he unlocks and opens it slowly. Upside down. Everywhere he looks things are upside down….or broken…or spread every which way.

He stands there stunned for a few seconds and then springs forward at a crash from the kitchen. Nimbly avoiding obstacles, he races there before again stopping short. His mom lays crumpled and unconscious on the floor, her stringy black hair plastered to her sweaty face.

"Damn." He mutters softly before none to gently picking her up. Carefully avoiding any objects on the floor, he carries her to her room and dumps her on the bed. She makes no sound and he shakes his head, turning away to start cleaning things up.

Hours pass and the worst of the mess is straightened. As the clock chimes one, the boy tiredly stands from his crouched position in the kitchen. Wearily unlocking a door adjacent to the living room, he steps into a dark, den-like bedroom.

Its rust-colored walls are seen sporadically, showing up between posters of bands and framed pictures. His bed is tucked away in one corner with a small table and lamp. A shelf runs along one wall, holding various knickknacks, notebooks, and a stereo. In the last and farthest corner from the door sits a low, round wicker-framed chair.

He flips on the stereo and collapses into the chair, his thoughts too active to sleep. "Kikyou betrayed me…" The painful thought falls on a mind numb from tiredness. "She chose her gang over me…I guess I should've known that. I would probably do the same if I were her, but I'm not….and I wouldn't." The boy sighs as the undulating sounds coming from his stereo draw him into sleep.

~*~*

"INUYASHA!!!" He jerks awake, his hand automatically reaching for his switchblade before he wakes up enough to recognize the voice of his mother.

"Here." He calls tiredly, getting up from the chair and opening the door.

"Where were you yesterday?!" She walks out of her room looking like a respectable worker except for her angry red face.

Inuyasha raises an eyebrow. "I have school, Mother. I have to be there all day."

Her face grows even redder. "I know that! But you weren't there yesterday; they called. And look at this place! It's a sty! You were supposed to clean it up yesterday! Oh, why did I have to have such a lazy and worthless son?"

The clock chiming five-thirty interrupts any retort Inuyasha may have made. Denia Yuyao gives her son one last disdainful look before leaving for work.

"Bitch." He says to the closed door, then turns to get ready for another boring day of school.

~*~*~

In some alley between the apartment and his school, Inuyasha stops and leans up against the brick wall, waiting. His brooding amber eyes fall upon a figure walking up toward him. It is soon distinguishable as another boy about the same age as Inuyasha. He is wearing a purple trench coat and his dark hair is pulled back in a small tail.

"Miroku."

Miroku jumps and scans the alley, relaxing as he realizes whom it was that had spoken. "Inuyasha! Quit doing that!"

Inuyasha grins. "Why? Can't spot my _silver_ hair among the shadows? You can't still be _that_ bad."

Both laugh at the memory of how they'd first met….

*~*~*

_A lonely ten-year-old wanders through the streets into the west side of the town and,_ _unluckily for him, the middle of a big gang war. After barely escaping from some older boys who were convinced he was a spy for another gang, he runs into more who think the same. Finally, with a few, but not too bad, new bruises, he takes shelter in a deserted-looking corner alley._

_"Hey." A voice says right beside him, making him jump and look around. "What're you doin' here?"_

_"I…I'm hiding." The boy answers, quivering but bravely trying to push aside his panic. "You…you're not gonna h…hurt me more, are ya?"_

_The answering laugh seems to come from everywhere at once. "And if I am?"_

_The boy's searching becomes frantic. "Where are you?!"_

_A hand reaches out of the darkness to tap the boy's shoulder. "Here."_

_He jumps back and turns around to face a silver-haired boy about his own age. "How'd you do that?" Awe is clearly written on his face._

_"Do what?" The silver-haired boy asks, for a moment confused._

_"Turn invisible."_

*~*~*

"And you still won't tell me!" Laughs Miroku, mentally noting the dark shade in his friend's eyes. "But we'd better get to school, it'll start soon,"

"Yeah," Answers Inuyasha, "Let's go wreck some hell."

~*~*~

Inuyasha saunters into his homeroom class just as the second bell rings. His teacher looks up, surprised yet unsurprised to see him actually almost on time.

Inuyasha ignores both the teacher and his classmates, who whisper among themselves about who-knows-what, and sits down in an empty desk at the back of the room. He pulls out a notepad and begins to write, completely blocking out the world around him.

~*~*~

_I'm stuck here in this prison_

_I don't want to be here…_

_But I don't want to go home_

_I just want to run…_

_Run away._

"Inuyasha."

_~Arrgh! I'm just going to kill somebody.~_

"Inuyasha?"

_Everything is getting so screwed up it's just…just…so completely messed-_

~*~*~

"Inuyasha!!"

"What?!" He snaps at his teacher, pissed that _anyone_ could interrupt his silent rant and pull him out of his world.

The teacher levels a stern glare at him. "The principal wants to see you."

"Great." Thinks Inuyasha as he gathers up his things. "I actually come to school this time and I'm not even allowed to stay in class. There's something wrong with this system…" As he walks out of the room, he hears a voice behind him ask for permission to go to the bathroom.

When a pair of footsteps runs to catch up with him, Inuyasha turns around. "What, Kat?"

"I broke the gas pipes in the west main hallway last night; that's probably what they're calling you in for." Kat nervously twirls a piece of her curly, dark-brown hair around her fingers. "Come on, Yash, let me take the blame this time, you can't afford it right now."

Inuyasha shakes his head. "No. Miroku's moving soon, so they'll stop automatically assuming it's us and start learning that we're not the only troublemakers in this school. When that finally happens, you'll need a small record."

Kat nods her acceptance and heads back to class. In the main hallway, Inuyasha meets up with Miroku and together they stroll into the principal's office.

On top of the desk is a piece of paper:

~*~*~

_Inuyasha & Miroku,_

_DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING! I'll be there in a few minutes._

~*~*~

The pair snorts & looks around at the cheaply decorated office. "Like we'd find anything of value here."

They slouch down in the two chairs opposite the desk and wait.

"Hey Inuyasha."

"What?"

"What did you do in the five minutes we were actually at school?"

Inuyasha grins. "Me? I didn't do anything."

Miroku sits up straighter and stares at him. "You mean we're taking the blame for that gang _again_?"

"Yep."

"Oh. So…..what'd we do?"

"Broke the gas pipes in the west hallway."

"That girl is still trying to blow up the science lab? Did she actually do it this time?"

BOOM! 

The sound vibrates against the two boys' eardrums for a second before Inuyasha answers. "Seems like it."

"Oh shit."

~*~*~

"I can't believe you got suspended for a _whole month_!! No-I _can_ believe it. You just can't stay out of trouble, can you?"

Denia had been called from work to pick Inuyasha up & she was _not_ happy about it. "Do you know how close they were to expelling you?! They only couldn't because there wasn't incriminating proof! Now I have to pay the damages to that whole wing of the school! What possessed you to release gas in the science labs, you stupid boy?"

"First off," Inuyasha looks at his mother in disgust. "You only have to pay _half_ the damages and second-"

"And now you're back talking me?" Denia pulls over the car. "Get out!"

"Fine! I will! Maybe, if I'm so much trouble to you, I should move with Miroku's family!" Inuyasha slams the door open and steps out.

"Great! I'll send your stuff over." With that she starts to speed off and Inuyasha barely gets the door shut.

~*~*~

Ding-Dong!

Miroku opens the door to a very pissed-off looking friend. 

"I…Inuyasha." He stutters, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"Well," Inuyasha leans against the door frame, "If your parents agree, it seems that I'm living with you."

"Uh…"

"Miroku?" A feminine voice calls from inside. "Who is it?"

"Inuyasha, Mom."

"Oh good. He can have this talk, too. Bring him in."

Miroku shoots an apologetic look at Inuyasha before motioning him towards their living room. 

The boys sit down on a couch opposite Miroku's mom, who looks at them sternly.

"Now boys, I can understand skipping school because you hate it, but _blowing it up_? Don't you think that's a little drastic?" 

Granted," She raises her hand to ward off any protests, "That it _was_ under construction and only a few people got minor burns, but think. What if the fire had spread to the rest of the school?  Think of how many would've gotten burnt or _worse_. Inuyasha, wipe that grin off your face, this is serious."

Inuyasha, who had been grinning at the thought of the principal burning, stops at her command. 

"Now, I'm disappointed in you boys. You have better brains than that, use them!"

Miroku felt more and more guilty as his mothers speech took a turn in the 'I'm so disappointed, but it must have been something I did' stage until finally he had to tell her.

"But we _didn't_." He mumbles to the floor. Inuyasha glances at him, surprised.

"What was that?" Miroku's mom looks at him closely. "Did you just say that you didn't do it?"

Miroku nods, still looking down, and Inuyasha feels compelled to take some of the heat. 

"Yeah….we didn't."

Inuyasha feels the weight of her stare turn to him. "Explain."

"Well, we take the heat off the 'Cross…." He hates how her eyes can bore right through him…. 

"You take the blame for….some _gang_?" Her gaze switches back to Miroku. "What do you have to say about this?"

He looks up at her, then glances at Inuyasha. "We have to, it's like his family. We can afford to take it, they…." 

He trails off and her gaze softens. "I see. Well, I can't say I approve, but I understand."

Miroku takes this as a dismissal and gets up, but Inuyasha stays seated, looking uncomfortable.

Miroku's mom looks at him expectantly and, after a moment of silence, he speaks up. "Would….would it be ok if I moved in and lived with you guys? My mother….kicked me out."

 "What?" Miroku looks at his friend. "When did this happen?"

"About an hour or two ago. She said she'd send my stuff over, so I hope it's ok if I stay for at least a little while..?" This last he directed towards Miroku's mom with a hopeful glance. 

"Oh, of course! Stay with us for as long as you need to…. we'd need your-Denia to sign some papers so we could be your legal guardians and such, though."  

Inuyasha snorts. "_That _shouldn't be a problem, she'll be glad to get rid of me."

Before Miroku's mother can say anything sympathetic to embarrass all of them, the doorbell sounds. Miroku quickly gets up to answer it. 

"Uhh…Inuyasha?" His voice sounds from the entry. "There's a lady here who says she has some things for you…?"

"Kaede!" Inuyasha jumps up and runs to the entry, but catches himself before he hugs her.

The older lady smiles at him. "I heard Denia ranting on about kicking you out and thought I'd better be getting your things for you before she plundered them…." She looks thoughtful. "Or broke down the door to your room." 

"Why that was very thoughtful of you." Miroku's mom had come in from the living room.

"What did you manage to get?" Inuyasha asks, before the two start talking.

Kaede turns to him with a twinkle in her eye. "Come out to my car and see." 

She leads the way out to her little red car and opens the door. 

"Kaede!" Inuyasha exclaims, looking into the stuffed car. "You even got my stereo from her?!"

"And that's not all." Kaede, practically grinning with glee now, pulls a few papers out of the mess that is Inuyasha's stuff. "I got her to sign these papers, too."

"What are they?" Inuyasha can barely dare to hope.

"They make Reani," Kaede motions towards Miroku's mother, "Your legal guardian." 

~*~*~

Maybe Inuyasha's day isn't turning out so bad after all.

~~~~~~~~~~~

AN:  Ha ha!! I finished the first chapter! & on time!! See, Selenastarlight? I got it out this week like I said I would! If anything's confusing to anybody, email me or review & I'll try to answer your questions. Well, I'd better get this posted up. Oh, and if anyone knows how to work the italics so they _stay_, please tell me!!

Hawk


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